2:27 PM,
Feb. 23, 2013

Exterior of the United States Supreme Court Building in Washington in 2003. (Gannett News Service, Tim Dillon/USA TODAY)

Written by

Richard Wolf
USA TODAY

WASHINGTON -- The Voting Rights Act that goes on trial at the Supreme Court on Wednesday has helped boost African Americans' presence in Southern legislatures. But in a twist of irony, it also has contributed to their loss of political clout.

Since its passage in 1965, the law's Section 5 has forced states with a history of racial discrimination to clear changes in voting procedures with the federal government. The Justice Department, in turn, has insisted that drawing district lines is one of those procedures -- one that should give blacks and other minorities ample opportunity to elect ...